One of the most remarkable features of the two Obama victories was how
close the states he lost were to the member states of the Confederacy.
There were a few mismatches, but it was hard to ignore that power of
historical forces on the vote for the first African-American president.
In Germany, too, here’s the map of Berlin’s election in 2013, courtesy
of the FT (registration required) . . . The old Berlin Wall is in black. Notice how the former Communist, and still economically laggard, east
(purple) still votes left, while the gentrified, formerly West Berlin
votes right. The miracle? The West and the right are now led by a native
woman of the East. And the beat goes on.